Formative

 Assessment  Techniques1  
 
1. Agree  &  Disagree  Statements:  students  analyze  a  set  of  “fact  or  fiction”  statements,  choose  
agree  /  disagree  /  unsure  or  need  more  information,  then  describe  their  thinking.  

2. Agreement  Circles:  Students  stand  in  a  circle  as  the  teacher  reads  a  statement.  Students  who  
agree  step  into  the  center  of  the  circle,  and  are  matched  up  with  students  who  disagree  so  each  
can  defend  their  thinking.  Then  students  are  given  the  opportunity  to  reposition  themselves.  
The  idea  is  to  get  everyone  either  inside  the  circle  or  on  the  circumference.  

3. Annotated  Student  Drawings:  students  make  labeled  illustrations  that  visually  represent  and  
describe  their  thinking  about  a  scientific  concept.  

4. Card  Sorts:  students  group  a  set  of  cards  (or  post-­‐it  notes)  with  pictures  or  words  on  them  
according  to  a  certain  characteristic  or  category.  

5. CCC  –  Collaborative  Clued  Corrections:  students  complete  and  submit  an  assignment  made  up  
of  selected  responses  or  short  answers.  The  teacher  purposefully  selects  a  sample  of  student  
papers  that  include  incorrect  or  partially  correct  responses  and  writes  “clues”  on  them  about  
the  number  and  types  of  errors.  These  are  distributed  to  small  groups  of  students  who  work  
together  to  seek  out  the  problem  areas  and  revise  them.  

6. Chain  Notes:  a  question  is  printed  on  the  top  of  a  paper  (e.g.,  what  is  matter?)  and  the  paper  is  
circulated  from  student  to  student.  Each  student  responds  with  one  or  two  sentences  and  
passes  it  to  the  next  student.  

7. Commit  and  Toss:  Students  are  given  a  question.  After  completing  the  question  (or  writing  their  
own  question),  students  crumple  their  paper  up  into  a  ball  and,  upon  a  signal  from  the  teacher,  
toss  the  paper  balls  around  the  room.  Students  pick  up  a  paper  near  them  and  share  the  ideas  
and  thinking  written  on  the  “caught”  paper.  

8. Concept  Card  Mapping:  Students  are  given  cards  with  concepts  written  on  them.  They  move  the  
cards  around  and  arrange  them  as  a  connected  web  of  knowledge,  and  create  linkages  that  
describe  the  relationships  between  concepts.    

9. Concept  Cartoons:  Students  are  shown  a  cartoon  drawing  that  depict  children  or  adults  sharing  
their  ideas  about  common,  everyday  phenomena.  Students  decide  which  character  in  the  
cartoon  they  agree  with  most  and  why.    

10. Data  Match:  Students  are  provided  with  a  set  of  data  from  a  familiar  investigation  and  several  
statements  about  the  data.  Students  use  evidence  form  the  data  to  determine  which  
statements  are  accurate.  

11. Directed  Paraphrasing:  Students  translate  a  lesson  or  part  of  a  lesson  using  language  and  
examples  appropriate  for  a  specific  audience  (e.g.,  talking  to  a  younger  brother  or  sister)  

                                                                                                                       
1
 From  Page  Keeley’s  Science  Formative  Assessment:  75  Practical  Strategies  for  Linking  Assessment,  Instruction,  and  
Learning,  NSTA  Press  (2008).  
12. Explanation  Analysis:  Students  self  or  peer-­‐assess  their  ability  to  construct  and  analyze  a  well-­‐
crafted  scientific  explanation  (the  claim,  appropriate  and  sufficient  evidence,  and  reasoning  that  
links  the  evidence  to  the  claim  using  a  scientific  principle).    

13. Fact  First  Questioning:  The  teacher  begins  by  stating  a  fact,  and  then  turns  it  into  a  deeper  how  
or  why  question  (e.g.,  Glucose  is  a  form  of  food  for  plants.  Why  is  glucose  considered  a  food  for  
plants?)  

14. Familiar  Phenomenon  Probe:  Students  are  presented  with  a  familiar  situation  and  a  set  of  
possible  explanations.  The  distractors  (wrong  choices)  are  based  on  commonly  held  ideas  noted  
in  the  research  on  children’s  misconceptions  in  science.  Students  are  asked  to  provide  an  
explanation  to  support  the  answer  they  selected.  

15. First  Word  –  Last  Word:  Students  construct  statements  about  a  concept  or  topic  before  and  
after  instruction  that  begins  with  a  designated  letter  of  the  alphabet  (e.g.,  photosynthesis;  
plants  make  their  own  food…)  

16. Fishbowl  Think  Aloud:  Four  or  five  students  are  selected  to  be  in  a  “fishbowl”  sitting  together  in  
a  cluster  or  the  front  of  the  room.  These  students  are  given  a  prompt  and  “think  aloud,”  
discussing  and  defending  their  ideas.  The  rest  of  the  class  and  teacher  surround  the  students  
who  are  in  the  “fishbowl”  and  listen  attentively  to  their  conversation.    

17. Fist  to  Five:  Students  indicate  the  extent  of  their  understanding  of  a  concept  or  procedure  by  
holding  up  a  closed  fist  (no  understanding),  one  finger  (very  little  understanding),  and  a  range  of  
up  to  five  fingers  (I  understand  it  completely  and  can  easily  explain  it  to  someone  else).    

18. Focused  Listing:  Students  recall  ideas  and  experiences  related  to  a  science  topic  they  
encountered  in  a  prior  instructional  unit  or  grade.  Students  list  as  many  concepts,  facts,  and  
ideas  as  they  can  recall.  

19. Four  Corners:  Students  move  to  a  corner  of  the  room  designated  to  match  their  response  to  a  
question  or  a  similar  way  of  thinking.  

20. Frayer  Model:  Students  write  down  prior  knowledge  about  a  concept  in  a  graphic  organizer  for  
operational  definition,  characteristics,  examples,  and  nonexamples.  

21. Friendly  Talk  Probes:  Students  are  presented  with  a  real-­‐life  scenario  in  which  friends,  family  
members,  or  familiar  adults  talk  about  a  science-­‐related  concept  or  phenomenon.  Students  are  
asked  to  pick  the  person  they  most  agree  with  and  explain  why.  

22. Give  Me  Five:  Students  are  given  a  prompt  and  take  a  minute  or  two  for    a  “quiet  think.”  Five  
students  volunteer  to  publicly  share  their  reflection.  

23. Guided  Reciprocal  Peer  Questioning:  students  question  each  other  about  the  content  they  are  
learning  using  higher-­‐order,  open-­‐ended  question  stems.  

24. Human  Scatterplots:  Students  position  themselves  on  a  “floor  graph”  according  to  their  
response  to  a  question  and  their  confidence  level.    
25. Informal  Student  Interviews:  The  teacher  conducts  conversational  interviews  with  students  in  
informal  settings,  such  as  lunch,  recess,  hallway  talks,  bus  duty,  riding  on  the  bus  to  a  field  trip,  
and  other  contexts  where  students  are  not  in  a  formal  classroom  setting.    

26. Interest  Scale:  Students  place  post-­‐it  notes  on  a  chart  with  a  marked  scale  to  indicate  their  level  
of  interest  in  the  topic  being  studied.  

27. I  Think  –  We  Think:  Students  use  a  two-­‐column  sheet  of  paper  to  record  their  individual  ideas  
prior  to  group  discussion,  and  ideas  their  group  or  class  has  that  surface  through  group  
discussion.    

28. I  Used  to  Think  but  Now  I  Know:  Students  compare  verbally  or  in  writing  their  ideas  at  the  
beginning  of  a  lesson  or  instructional  sequence  to  the  ideas  they  have  after  completing  the  
lesson(s).  It  differs  from  K-­‐W-­‐L  variations  because  both  parts  of  the  reflection  occur  after  
instruction.  

29. Juicy  Questions:  Students  think  deeply  to  answer  a  rich,  novel  question.  A  juicy  question  
requires  students  to  work  on  a  series  or  smaller  questions  and  ideas  before  they  take  a  stab  at  
answering  it.  

30. Justified  List:  Students  read  a  list  of  statements  about  an  object,  process  or  concept.  Students  
check  off  items  on  the  list  that  fit  the  statement  and  provide  a  justification  explaining  the  
reasons  for  their  selections.  

31. Justified  True  or  False  Statements:  Students  examine  a  set  of  claims  or  statements  and  draw  
upon  evidence  from  data,  prior  knowledge,  or  other  sources  to  analyze  their  validity.  

32. K-­‐W-­‐L  Variations:  Students  describe  what  they  Know  about  a  topic,  Want  to  know  about  a  topic,  
and  Learned  about  the  topic.  

33. Learning  Goals  Inventory:  Students  are  presented  with  a  learning  goal  /  objective  for  a  unit  of  
instruction,  and  write  about  the  extent  to  which  they  feel  they  have  prior  knowledge  and  
experiences  about  the  learning  goal.  

34. Look  Back:  Students  recount  specific  things  they  learned  over  a  given  instructional  period  of  
time.  

35. Missed  Conception:  Students  are  asked  to  analyze  a  statement,  describe  why  some  people  may  
believe  it  to  be  true,  describe  what  one  could  do  to  help  someone  change  his  or  her  “missed  
conception”  in  favor  of  the  scientific  idea,  and  reflect  on  their  own  ideas  in  relation  to  the  
statement.  

36. Muddiest  Point:  Students  take  a  few  minutes  to  jot  down  what  the  most  difficult  or  confusing  
part  of  a  lesson  was  for  them.  

37. No-­‐Hands  Questioning:  The  teacher  poses  a  question,  practices  wait  time,  and  calls  on  students  
randomly.  
38. Odd  One  Out:  Students  are  presented  with  a  list  of  seemingly  similar  items  and  must  choose  
which  item  in  the  group  does  not  belong.  

39. Paint  the  Picture:  Students  are  given  a  question  and  must  design  a  visual  representation  that  
reveals  their  thinking  and  answers  the  question.  

40. Partner  Speaks:  Students  talk  through  an  idea  or  question  with  another  student  before  sharing  
with  a  larger  group.  When  the  ideas  are  shared  with  the  larger  group,  pairs  speak  from  the  
perspective  of  their  partner’s  ideas.  

41. Pass  the  Question:  Students  work  together  in  pairs  to  respond  to  a  question,  partially  finishing  a  
response.  When  the  time  is  up,  they  exchange  their  written,  partially  completed  response  with  
another  pair  to  finish  –  modifying,  adding  to,  or  changing  it  as  the  pair  deems  necessary.  

42. A  Picture  Tells  a  Thousand  Words:  Students  are  digitally  photographed  during  an  inquiry-­‐based  
activity  or  investigation.  Students  are  given  the  photograph  and  asked  to  describe  what  they  
were  doing  and  learning  during  the  “inquiry  moment”  and  write  their  description  under  the  
photograph.  

43. P-­‐E-­‐O  Probes  (Predict,  Explain,  Observe):  Students  are  presented  with  a  phenomenon  or  
situation  and  asked  to  make  a  prediction  or  select  a  prediction  from  a  list.  They  must  explain  the  
reasoning  that  supports  their  prediction.  The  probe  is  followed  by  an  opportunity  for  students  
to  test  their  prediction,  observe  the  results,  and  modify  their  explanation  as  needed.  

44. POMS  –  Point  of  Most  Significance:  Students  are  asked  to  identify  the  most  significant  learning  
or  idea  they  gained  from  a  lesson.  

45. Popsicle  Stick  Questioning:  Names  (or  group  numbers)  are  written  on  popsicle  sticks  and  placed  
in  a  cup.  An  inner  cup,  placed  inside  the  outer  cup,  holds  the  popsicle  sticks  with  the  names  of  
students  the  teacher  wants  to  be  sure  to  call  on.  The  names  can  be  pulled  from  the  inner  cup  
when  needed,  while  giving  the  appearance  that  students  are  all  randomly  selected  when  called  
upon  to  respond  to  a  question.  

46. Prefacing  Explanations:  students  learn  how  to  preface  explanations  in  order  to  encourage  their  
peers  to  improve  communication  of  their  ideas  (e.g.,  I’m  not  sure  I  understand  your  reasoning.  
I’m  wondering  if  you  considered  other  possibilities)  

47. PVF  –  Paired  Verbal  Fluency:  Partners  take  turns  in  timed  rounds,  talking  “off  the  top  of  their  
heads”  about  an  assigned  topic  or  prompt.  While  one  person  talks,  the  other  listens  until  time  
elapses  and  partners  switch  roles.  

48. Question  Generating:  Students  formulate  good  questions  about  a  topic  (why  does…how  does…)  

49. Recognizing  Exceptions:  Students  are  presented  with  a  question  that  encourages  them  to  look  
for  exceptions  (e.g.,  do  all  seeds  need  only  warm  temperatures  in  order  to  germinate?)  

50. Refutations:  Students  analyze  statements  about  scientific  ideas,  processes,  or  procedures  that  
contain  both  accurate  and  incorrect  information.    
51. Representation  Analysis:  Students  analyze  a  scientific  representation  by  comparing  it  to  the  real  
thing  and  pointing  out  flaws,  inaccuracies,  limitations,  or  discrepancies  in  the  representation  
(pictures,  analogies,  simulations,  graphs,  charts,  physical  models,  or  diagrams).    

52. Rerun  (Recall,  Explain,  Results,  Uncertainties,  and  New  learnings):  Students  are  asked  to  write  
one  or  two  sentences  for  each  letter  of  the  acronym,  related  to  a  laboratory  experience  or  other  
type  of  inquiry-­‐based  investigation.  

53. Scientists’  Ideas  Comparison:  Students  are  given  a  summary  sheet  of  scientists’  ideas,  including  
appropriate  terminology,  related  to  a  topic  they  have  been  studying.  Students  compare  their  
existing  ideas  to  the  scientists’,  looking  for  differences  and  similarities.  

54. Sequencing:  Students  are  presented  with  a  set  of  statements,  pictures,  ideas,  or  a  combination  
of  all  three  and  they  must  arrange  them  in  a  logical  order.  

55. Sticky  Bars:  Students  are  presented  with  a  short  answer  or  multiple  choice  question.  The  answer  
is  anonymously  recorded  on  a  post-­‐it  note  and  passed  in  to  the  teacher.  The  teacher  or  a  
student  arranges  the  notes  on  a  wall  or  whiteboard,  as  a  bar  graph,  representing  the  different  
student  responses.  

56. STIP  –  Scientific  Terminology  Inventory  Probe:  Students  indicate  their  level  of  familiarity  with  a  
scientific  term.  If  the  students  claim  to  be  familiar  with  the  term,  they  are  asked  to  provide  a  
description  to  reveal  the  extent  to  which  they  connect  conceptual  understanding  to  
terminology.  (I  have  never  heard  of  this,  I  have  heard  of  this  but  I’m  not  sure  what  it  means,  I  
have  some  idea  what  it  means,  I  clearly  know  what  it  means  and  can  describe  it)  

57.  Student  Evaluation  of  Learning  Gains:  The  teacher  designs  an  instrument  to  gather  feedback  
on  students’  perceptions  of  how  well  a  unit  of  instruction  helped  them  learn.  It  consists  of  
statements  on  a  5-­‐point  scale  about  the  “degree  of  gain”  in  areas  such  as  skills,  content  
knowledge,  attitudes,  and  dispositions  toward  science.  

58. Synectics:  Students  use  analogies  or  metaphors  to  connect  their  ideas  with  a  concept  (A  _____  
is  like  a  _______  because  ________.)  

59. Ten-­‐Two:  After  ten  minutes  of  instruction  that  involves  a  large  amount  of  information,  students  
take  two  minutes  to  reflect  on  and  summarize  what  they  have  learned  thus  far.  

60. Thinking  Log:  Students  respond  to  a  series  of  sentence  stems  as  thinking  starters  (I  got  confused  
when…so  I…I  was  really  surprised  when…right  now  I  am  thinking  about…I  figured  out…)  

61. Think-­‐Pair-­‐Share:  The  teacher  poses  a  question  and  gives  individual  students  time  to  think  
about  the  question.  Students  then  pair  up  with  a  partner  to  discuss  their  ideas.  After  pairs  
discuss,  students  share  their  ideas  in  a  small-­‐group  or  whole-­‐class  discussion.  

62. Thought  Experiments:  Students  make  a  prediction  about  what  would  happen  in  a  situation  that  
could  not  be  easily  carried  out  as  a  real-­‐life  experiment  (e.g.,  if  you  could  drill  a  hole  all  the  way  
through  the  center  of  the  Earth)  
63. Three-­‐Minute  Pause:  Students  pause  during  a  block  of  instruction  to  summarize,  clarify,  and  
reflect  on  their  understanding  through  discussion  with  a  partner  or  small  group.  

64. Three-­‐Two-­‐One:  Students  respond  in  writing  to  three  reflective  prompts,  providing  six  
responses  (three  of  the  first,  two  of  the  second,  and  one  final  reflection)  that  describe  what  they  
learned  from  a  lesson  or  instructional  sequence.    Example:  three  key  ideas,  two  things  I  am  still  
struggling  with,  one  thing  that  will  help  me  tomorrow.  

65. Traffic  Light  Cards:  Students  are  given  three  different  colored  cards  and  asked  to  self-­‐assess  
their  understanding  about  a  concept  or  skill  they  are  learning  (green  –  I  understand  this  very  
well,  yellow  –  I  understand  most  of  it  but  could  use  a  little  help,  red  –  help  I  don’t  get  it)  

66. Traffic  Light  Cups:  Red,  yellow,  and  green  stackable  party  cups  are  placed  in  the  center  of  a  
group’s  table  or  workstation  and  represent  whether  the  group  is  able  to  proceed  without  the  
need  for  teacher  intervention  or  whether  they  need  assistance.  

67. Traffic  Dot  Lights:  Students  place  small  peel-­‐off  colored  dot  stickers  in  the  margins  of  their  work  
to  indicate  areas  where  they  feel  they  successfully  completed  the  task  (green),  areas  where  they  
aren’t  sure  about  their  work  and  would  like  feedback  (yellow),  and  areas  where  they  feel  they  
didn’t  understand  or  perform  well  on  the  task  and  need  help  (red).  

68. Two-­‐Minute  Paper:  Students  are  given  two  minutes  to  respond  to  a  predetermined  prompt  in  
writing  (could  be  about  an  activity,  field  trip,  lecture,  video,  or  other  learning  experience).  

69. Two  or  Three  before  Me:  The  teacher  implements  a  rule  that  at  least  two  or  three  students  
must  have  an  opportunity  to  talk  before  the  same  person  can  speak  again.  

70. Two  Stars  and  a  Wish:  This  is  a  technique  for  providing  feedback  on  students’  writing.  The  first  
sentence  describes  two  good  features  of  the  section  of  work  that  is  commented  on.  The  second  
sentence  encourages  revision  or  further  improvement.  

71. Two-­‐Thirds  Testing:  Students  take  an  ungraded  “practice  test”  two  thirds  of  the  way  through  a  
unit.  Students  are  provided  time  to  get  feedback  from  their  peers  and  the  teacher  on  their  
responses,  gaps  in  understanding,  or  difficulties  in  arriving  at  their  answers.  

72. Volleyball  –  Not  Ping-­‐Pong!  The  teacher  asks  a  question,  a  student  responds,  and  other  
students  build  on  the  response  until  the  teacher  “serves”  another  question  (not  just  teacher-­‐
student-­‐teacher  questioning).  

73. Wait  Time  Variations:  The  teacher  waits  at  least  three  seconds  before  addressing  an  
unanswered  question  or  asking  someone  to  answer  it.  

74. What  are  You  Doing  and  Why?  Students  are  asked  to  describe  what  it  is  they  are  supposed  to  
be  learning  about  and  how  the  task  they  have  been  working  on  will  help  them  learn.  They  can  
pretend  that  a  visitor  walked  into  the  room.  

75. Whiteboarding:  Students  use  portable  whiteboards  and  dry  erase  markers  during  small  group  
activities  to  draw  and  record  their  ideas  in  response  to  a  prompt  given  by  the  teacher.    
 - Tools for Formative Assessment -
- Techniques to Check for Understanding -
- Processing Activities -
Periodically, distribute index cards and ask students to write on both sides, with these
1. Index Card
instructions: (Side 1) Based on our study of (unit topic), list a big idea that you understand and
Summaries/
word it as a summary statement. (Side 2) Identify something about (unit topic) that you do not
Questions
yet fully understand and word it as a statement or question.
Ask students to display a designated hand signal to indicate their understanding of a specific
concept, principal, or process: - I understand____________ and can explain it (e.g., thumbs
2. Hand Signals
up). - I do not yet understand ____________ (e.g., thumbs down). - I’m not completely sure
about ____________ (e.g., wave hand).
A one-minute essay question (or one-minute question) is a focused question with a specific
3. One Minute Essay
goal that can, in fact, be answered within a minute or two.
Present students with an analogy prompt: (A designated concept, principle, or process) is like
4. Analogy Prompt
_________________ because _________________________________________________.
Any of several forms of graphical organizers which allow learners to perceive relationships
5. Web or Concept
between concepts through diagramming key words representing those concepts.
Map
http://www.graphic.org/concept.html
Present students with common or predictable misconceptions about a designated concept,
6. Misconception
principle, or process. Ask them whether they agree or disagree and explain why. The
Check
misconception check can also be presented in the form of a multiple-choice or true-false quiz.
7. Student One on one conversation with students to check their level of understanding.
Conference
The Three-Minute Pause provides a chance for students to stop, reflect on the concepts and
ideas that have just been introduced, make connections to prior knowledge or experience, and
seek clarification.

8. 3-Minute Pause

Walk around the classroom and observe students as they work to check for learning.
Strategies include:
9. Observation

A process in which students collect information about their own learning, analyze what it
10. Self-Assessment reveals about their progress toward the intended learning goals and plan the next steps in
their learning.
Exit cards are written student responses to questions posed at the end of a class or learning
11. Exit Card
activity or at the end of a day.
Check the progress of a student’s portfolio. A portfolio is a purposeful collection of significant
work, carefully selected, dated and presented to tell the story of a student’s achievement or
12. Portfolio Check growth in well-defined areas of performance, such as reading, writing, math, etc. A portfolio
usually includes personal reflections where the student explains why each piece was chosen
and what it shows about his/her growing skills and abilities.
Quizzes assess students for factual information, concepts and discrete skill. There is usually a
13. Quiz single best answer. Some quiz examples are:

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 Students record in a journal their understanding of the topic, concept or lesson taught. The
14. Journal Entry teacher reviews the entry to see if the student has gained an understanding of the topic,
lesson or concept that was taught.
In response t o a cue, all students respond verbally at the same time. The response can be
15. Choral Response
either to answer a question or to repeat something the teacher has said.
Each student in the class is assigned a different letter of the alphabet and they must select a
16. A-B-C Summaries
word starting with that letter that is related to the topic being studied.
17. Debriefing A form of reflection immediately following an activity.
The teacher creates a spinner marked into 4 quadrants and labeled “Predict, Explain,
Summarize, Evaluate.” After new material is presented, the teacher spins the spinner and asks
18. Idea Spinner
spinner lands in the “Summarize” quadrant, the teacher might say, “List the key concepts just
presented.”
Inside and outside circles of students face each other. Within each pair of facing students,
19. Inside-Outside
students quiz each other with questions they have written. Outside circle moves to create new
Circle
p
20. Reader’s Theater
21. One Sentence Students are asked to write a summary sentence that answers the “who, what where, when,
Summary why, how” questions about the topic.
Description: A ___________ is a kind of____________ that ...
Compare/Contrast:
22. Summary Frames
Problem/Solution:
Cause/Effect
23. One Word Select (or invent) one word which best summarizes a topic.
Summary
24. Think-Pair- Share/ Teacher gives direction to students. Students formulate individual response, and then turn to
Turn to Your a partner to share their answers. Teacher calls on several random pairs to share their answers
Partner with the class.
25. Think-Write-Pair- Students think individually, write their thinking, pair and discuss with partner, then share with
Share the class.
Partner up – giver and receiver Kind of like “Password” or “Pyramid.” Both know the
26. Talk a Mile a category, but the receiver has his back to the board/screen. A set of terms will appear based
Minute on the category – giver gives clues, while receiver tries to guess the terms.
stands up
- How is __________ similar to/different from ________________?
- What are the characteristics/parts of _______________________?
- In what other ways might we show show/illustrate ___________?
- What is the big idea, key concept, moral in _________________?
- How does ________________ relate to ____________________?
27. Oral Questioning - What ideas/details can you add to _________________________?
- Give an example of ____________________________________?
- What is wrong with ____________________________________?
- What might you infer from ______________________________?
- What conclusions might be drawn from ____________________?
- What question are we trying to answer? What problem are we trying to solve?
Compiled by K Lambert, OCPS Curriculum Services, 4/2012
 - What are you assuming about ____________________________?
- What might happen if __________________________________?
- What criteria would you use to judge/evaluate _______________?
- What evidence supports ________________________________?
- How might we prove/confirm ____________________________?
- How might this be viewed from the perspective of ___________?
- What alternatives should be considered ____________________?
- What approach/strategy could you use to ___________________?
A collection of activities from which students can choose to do to demonstrate their
28. Tic-Tac-Toe/ understanding. It is presented in the form of a nine square grid similar to a tic-tac-toe board
Think-Tac-Toe and students may be expected to complete from one to “three in a row”. The activities vary in
content, process, and product and can be tailored to address DOK levels.
Students choose a corner based on their level of expertise of a given subject.
Based on your knowledge of __________________ , which corner would you choose?
Corner 1: The Dirt
–(There’s so much dust, I can’t see where I’m going! Help!!)
Corner 2: The Paved (It’s fairly smooth, but there are many potholes along the
way.)
29. Four Corners
Corner 3: The Highway ( I feel fairly confident but have an occasional need to slowdown.)
Corner 4: The Interstate (I ’m traveling along and could easily give directions to someone else.)
Once students are in their chosen corners, allow students to discuss their progress with others.
Questions may be prompted by teacher.
Corner One will pair with Corner Three; Corner Two will pair with Corner for peer
tutoring.
This is a variation on the one-minute paper, though you may wish to give students a slightly
longer time period to answer the question. Here you ask (at the end of a class period, or at a
30. Muddiest (or
natural break in the presentation), "What was the "muddiest point" in today's lecture?" or,
Clearest) Point
perhaps, you might be more specific, asking, for example: "What (if anything) do you find
unclear about the concept of 'personal identity' ('inertia', 'natural selection', etc.)?".
3 things you found out
2 interesting things
1 question you still have
3 differences between ___
2 effects of __ on ____
1 question you still have about the topic
3 important facts
31. 3-2-1 2 interesting ideas
1 insight about yourself as a learner
3 key words
2 new ideas
1 thought to think about
Write 3 questions about the text (unfamiliar words, confusing passages or ideas)
Write 2 predictions based on the text (what will happen next based on the reading)
Make one connection based on the text (connect to something you know or have
experienced)
Display 6 questions from the lesson Have students in groups of 4.
Each group has 1 die. Each student rolls the die and answers the question with the
32. Cubing corresponding number. If a number is rolled more than once the student may elaborate on

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 The strategy asks learners to respond in 2–10 minutes to an open-ended question or prompt
33. Quick Write posed by the teacher before, during, or after reading.

34. Directed Students summarize in well-chosen (own) words a key idea presented during the class period
Paraphrasing or the one just past.

In two minutes, students recall and list in rank order the most important ideas from a previous
day's class; in two more minutes, they summarize those points in a single sentence, then write
35. RSQC2
one major question they want answered, then identify a thread or theme to connect this
material to the course's major goal.
Problem/Solution Paragraph

______________present(s) a dilemma that is___________. The problem is

_______________. This has/have occurred because

_____________________________. A resolution is/was possible. To solve it/this, it

will be/has been necessary to _______________
____________________________________________. The solution(s) include(s)
_____________________________________________________________________________.

Compare and Contrast Paragraph

There are several differences between ______________ and _____. They

. In contrast to , has
. Unlike _____, does not
_________ __. On the other hand,

Description Paragraph
36. Writing Frames
Have you ever _________________? has/have very interesting characteristics.
It/they has/have . it/they
has/have which enhances
. It/they also
.

Cause and Effect Paragraph

_________________ is influenced by ___ . Since

happened, then ___________________.
Therefore,______________________________. This provides explanation for ______
___and ____ ___________ . The
impact is .

Sequence Paragraph

The events/process of __________ is __________________. The first ____

___ . Then,
. Next, ______
________________________. ,__________________________.

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37. Decisions, Given a prompt, class goes to the side that corresponds to their opinion on the topic, side
Decisions share out reasoning, and students are allowed to change sides after discussion
(Philosophical
Chairs)
38. Somebody Students respond to narrative text with structured story grammar either orally, pictorially, or
Wanted But So in writing. (Character(s)/Event/Problem/Solution)
Provide 3-5 statements that aren’t clearly true or false, but are somewhat debatable. The
purpose is to help students reflect on a text and engage in discussion with their
peers afterwards. These scales focus on generalizations about characters, themes, conflicts, or
symbolism. There are no clear cut answers in the book. They help students to analyze,
39. Likert Scale synthesize and evaluate information)
One question on a Likert Scale might look like this:
1. The character (name) should not have done (action).
_______________________________________________________________________
strongly agree disagree agree strongly agree
The teacher makes two sets of cards. One set contains questions related to the unit of study.
The second set contains the answers to the questions. Distribute the answer cards to the
students and either you or a student will read the question cards to the class. All students
40. I Have the
check their answer cards to see if they have the correct answer. A variation is to make cards
Question, Who
into a chain activity: The student chosen to begin the chain will read the given card aloud and
Has the Answer?
then wait for the next participant to read the only card that would correctly follow the
progression. Play continues until all of the cards are read and the initial student is ready to
read his card for the second time.
The teacher poses a question or a task. Students then individually respond on a scrap piece of
paper listing at least 3 thoughts/responses/statements. When they have done so, students
stand up. The teacher then randomly calls on a student to share one of his or her ideas from
the paper. Students check off any items that are said by another student and sit down when
41. Whip Around
all of their ideas have been shared with the group, whether or not they were the one to share
them. The teacher continues to call on students until they are all seated. As the teacher
listens to the ideas or information shared by the students, he or she can determine if there is a
general level of understanding or if there are gaps in students’ thinking.”
42. Word Sort Given a set of vocabulary terms, students sort in to given categories or create
their own categories for sorting

43. Triangular Prism Students give feedback to teacher by displaying the color that corresponds to their level of
(Red, understanding
Yellow, Green)
Cooperative group activity used to share or collect information from each member of the
44. Take and Pass group; students write a response, then pass to the right, add their response to next paper,
continue until they get their paper back, then group debriefs.

45. Student Data A tool for students to track their learning: Where am I going? Where am I now? How will I get
Notebooks there?
Students are divided into two teams to identify correct answers to questions given by the
46. Slap It teacher. Students use a fly swatter to slap the correct response posted on the wall.

47. Say Something Students take turns leading discussions in a cooperative group on sections of a reading or
video

Students use this strategy to help them remember information that is important to them. They
48. Flag It

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49. Fill In Your Written check for understanding strategy where students fill the blank. (Another term for rate
Thoughts of change is ____ or ____.)
50. Circle, Triangle, Something that is still going around in your head (Triangle) Something pointed that stood out
Square in your mind (Square) Something that “Squared” or agreed with your thinking.
Students should get in groups of four where one student is A, the next is B, etc. Each student
51. ABCD Whisper will be asked to reflect on a concept and draw a visual of his/her interpretation. Then they will
share their answer with each other in a zigzag pattern within their group.
Students form an inner and outer circle facing a partner. The teacher asks a
question and the students are given time to respond to their partner. Next, the
52. Onion Ring inner circle rotates one person to the left. The teacher asks another question and
the cycle repeats itself.
ReQuest, or reciprocal questioning, gives the teacher and students opportunities to ask each
other their own questions following the reading of a selection. The ReQuest strategy can be
used with most novels or expository material. It is important that the strategy be modeled
by the teacher using each genre. A portion of the text is read silently by both the teacher and
53. ReQuest/ the students. The students may leave their books open, but the teacher's text is closed.
Reciprocal Students then are encouraged to ask the teacher and other students questions about what has
Questioning been read. The teacher makes every attempt to help students get answers to their questions.
The roles then become reversed. The students close their books, and the teacher asks the
students information about the material. This procedure continues until the students have
enough information to predict logically what is contained in the remainder of the selection.
The students then are assigned to complete the reading
Students respond as whole group, small group, or individually to a topic as to “What they
54. K-W-L & already Know, what they want to learn, what they have learned”. PLUS (+) asks students to
KWL+ organize their new learnings using a concept map or graphic organizer that reflects the key
information. Then, each student writes a summary paragraph about what they have learned.
Students mark the text to identify a particular concept and chime in, reading the marked text
55. Choral Reading aloud in unison
Students ask questions of one another about an essential question, topic, or selected text. The
56. Socratic Seminar questions initiate a conversation that continues with a series of responses and additional
questions.
57. Newspaper Create a newspaper headline that may have been written for the topic we are studying.
Headline Capture the main idea of the event.
Students sit in groups and each group member is given a number. The teacher poses a
58. Numbered Heads problem and all four students discuss. The teacher calls a number and that student is
Together responsible for sharing for the group.
After teams have generated ideas on a topic using a piece of chart paper, they appoint a
“docent” to stay with their work. Teams rotate around examining other team’s ideas and ask
questions of the docent. Teams then meet together to discuss and add to their information so
59. Gallery Walk
the docent also can learn from other teams. 6.Graffiti – Groups receive a large piece of paper
and felt pens of different colors. Students generate ideas in the form of graffiti. Groups can
move to other papers and discuss/add to the ideas.
Students are assigned a chapter or passage to read and create one question and one comment
generated from the reading. In class, students will meet in either small or whole class groups
for discussion. Each student shares at least one comment or question. As the discussion moves
60. One Question and
student by student around the room, the next person can answer a previous question posed
One Comment
by another student, respond to a comment, or share their own comments and questions. As
the activity builds around the room, the conversation becomes in-depth with opportunity for
all students to learn new perspectives on the text.

Compiled by K Lambert, OCPS Curriculum Services, 4/2012